Mini Broccoli Fritters

Kid tested, mother approved.  Of all the vegetables, broccoli is definitely my daughter's favorite.  She has been known to snack on an entire bowl of cold, steamed broccoli while we all have a confused look on our faces.  But of course she's also a toddler, which means after I steamed a whole head of broccoli crowns this week she decided she was not that into broccoli.  So I I wanted to create something more enticing and these mini broccoli fritters were perfect, she gobbled them up....and I had to keep smacking my husband's hand away as he sneaked a few.  While I'll share a recipe, this isn't a science, just pulse some steamed broccoli and make a batter with some bread crumbs, cream cheese and egg.  Of course I also added some basil pesto because there are few things I make without it.  I read a few recipes for broccoli nuggets for kids and most call for cheddar cheese, but I think cream cheese works best as it adds a nice creaminess that keeps the fritters soft on the inside, instead of crunchy (I've made broccoli fritters with cheddar and this is best for kids).  Lastly, I'm more into pan frying than baking things like this, but baking would also work well.

2 cups steamed broccoli crowns
1/2 c panko bread crumbs
1/4 c cream cheese
1 T basil pesto
1 egg
salt, pepper

Pulse broccoli in food processor until smooth.  Spoon into mixing bowl.  Stir in panko, pesto and cream cheese as well as egg.  Mash well to incorporate all ingredients (salt and pepper lightly).  Form small patties with hand and place on parchment paper.  If batter is too sticky, chill in freezer for 10 minutes, or you could add a spoon or two of flour.  Heat 1 T of oil in a non-stick pan over medium heat.  Crisp patties on each side until light brown.    

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

Your typical peanut butter cookie, but with rich, dark chocolate chunks and a sprinkle of crushed sea salt.  A match made in heaven, with a gourmet taste.  I swear I'm doing more than baking, but I've already shared most all of the summer recipes I've been making.  If you're wondering what I'm doing when I'm not entertaining a toddler, nursing an infant, and maintaining the house, it's making basil pesto, lots and lots of pesto.  And sautéing swiss chard, or looking up a zucchini recipe.  But sometimes cookies need to be made for friends.  I love this recipe and will definitely be making these cookies again.  Original recipe can be found here.  

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
1/2 cup chunky or smooth peanut butter
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
1 egg
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup dark chocolate chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 375°.  Cream the butter, peanut butter and sugars until light. Add the egg and mix until fluffy.  Blend the flour, baking powder, soda and salt together well. Add these dry ingredients to the butter mixture. Add the chocolate chips. Drop generous amounts of cookie dough using an ice cream scoop.  Flatten with a fork, sprinkle with sea salt. Bake for 10-12 minutes at 375°.

Key Lime Bars

I'm back!  With a bouncing baby boy, and a lot less sleep.  Life is more hectic with a toddler and a newborn, but so far it's been manageable (with lots and lots of help).  Now that the seasonal veggies are becoming more enticing and I've fully recovered I am back in the kitchen, whipping up dishes here and there when I can steal some time.  I decided to make some key limes bars for a BBQ this weekend as my mother in-law recently brought some key limes from Southern California.  I only had about 16 or so I believe, enough for about 1/2 cup of juice (key limes are tiny and adorable and incredibly aromatic), so I substituted two additional conventional limes to bring the juice to 2/3 cup.  You can substitute limes for the entire recipe of course, as key limes aren't easy to come by.  This recipe is courtesy of Martha Stewart via Joe's Stone Crab (makes me miss living in Miami).  You don't need any other recipe for a key lime dessert, this is pretty much how you want it to taste.

1 cup plus 2 1/2 tablespoons finely ground graham cracker crumbs
1/3 cup sugar
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
3 large egg yolks
1 1/2 teaspoons finely grated lime zest
2/3 cup fresh Key lime juice (about 23 Key limes total)
1 can sweetened condensed milk (14 ounces)
freshly whipped cream (if desired)

To make crust, preheat oven to 350 degrees. Stir together graham cracker crumbs, sugar, and butter in a small bowl. Line an 8 inch square baking dish with parchment paper, hanging off an inch.  Press evenly onto bottom of baking pan. Bake until dry and golden brown, about 10 minutes. Let cool completely on a wire rack. (Leave oven on.)  To make filling, put egg yolks and lime zest in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Mix on high speed until very thick, about 5 minutes. Reduce speed to medium. Add condensed milk in a slow, steady stream, mixing constantly. Raise speed to high; mix until thick, about 3 minutes. Reduce speed to low. Add lime juice; mix until just combined.  Spread filling evenly over crust using a spatula. Bake, rotating dish halfway through, until filling is just set, about 10 minutes. Let cool completely on a wire rack. Refrigerate at least 4 hours (or overnight).  Cut into 2-by-2-inch bars. Put cream in the clean bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the clean whisk attachment. Mix on medium-high speed until stiff peaks form. Garnish bars with whipped cream and a slice of lime.

Frozen Yogurt Drops, and Kale Pops

I think that's actually a spinach blueberry pop, but you get the idea.  Now that the weather is warmer I'm finding myself preparing cooling treats for my toddler to enjoy after we come in from time outside.  I saw the idea for these frozen Greek yogurt drops on this food blog and loved the concept.  I never buy flavored yogurt because of the additives, but accidentally picked up some honey vanilla the other day, so I turned those into the drops pictured.  Usually I'll just take some plain, full fat, Greek yogurt and stir in some honey until it's slightly sweet.  You could easily blend in some fresh fruit as well.  Scoop about a cup into a pastry bag, and squeeze out drops onto some parchment paper and freeze for a few hours.  The drops will pop right off the paper and can be stored in the freezer in an airtight container.  They melt after a few minutes of course, so these aren't an "on the go" snack.  As for the pops, the mold is by Munchkin brand, and I absolutely love the snack size which your child will finish before it has a chance to start to melt.  My daughter isn't one to refuse her veggies (yet), but that doesn't mean I'm not on the look out for creative ways for her to get more.  We all drink a "green smoothie" each morning and what I often do is pour extra into the molds.  If not, I'm blending whatever I have in the fridge for the molds.  Sometimes it's more sorbet-like with watermelon, pineapple and cucumber, sometimes it's more creamy like peanut butter, banana and yogurt, and sometimes it's true green with kale, green grapes, honey dew and some yogurt.  I'm starting to realize she'll eat anything in a popsicle mold so I may start to get more aggressive with the vegetables......enjoy!       

Lemon Poppy Seed Cupcakes with Blueberry Frosting

These cupcakes scream spring, and they were a lovely addition to an Easter dinner party.  I'll be honest though, this isn't the fastest dessert to whip up, you'll have lots of dirty dishes, and there are a few things I'd change next time.  Of course when you're 8.5 months pregnant and making a dessert for a dinner party perhaps you're just tired and cranky and everything and anything seems like too much effort.  That being said, don't be discouraged, these are fun and delicious and I mean, cake.....who don't love cake....apparently I was craving lemon poppy seed cake.  When I found this recipe I was really struck by the interesting frosting, which uses freeze dried blueberries.  You can adjust the amount of powder you add (you'll blend the blueberries until pulverized) to make an even lighter purple and subtle blueberry flavor.  I would also add only lemon zest and skip the juice, depending on how strong your zest smells.  Here is the original recipe, I skipped the lemon curd filling because I was not about to go to that extreme.....   

Cupcakes
2 Eggs
1 and 1/2 Cups Flour
1 and 1/4 Cups Sugar1/2 Cup (1 stick) Butter, softened
1/3 Cup Lemon Juice (optional)
3 Tablespoons Grated Lemon Zest
1/3 Cup Sour Cream
2 Tablespoons Milk
1 Tablespoon Poppy Seeds
1/2 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract
1/2 Teaspoon Salt
1/4 Teaspoon Baking Soda
1/4 Teaspoon Baking Powder

Frosting
(1) 1.2 Ounces Package Freeze-Dried Blueberries (can be found at Trader Joe's)
1 Cup Powdered Sugar (I think 1.5 cups would be better)
1/2 Cup Cream Cheese
1/2 Cup Butter, softened

Mix together all of the dry ingredients in a small bowl, except the poppy seeds and sugar. In another small bowl, mix together the sour cream, milk, vanilla extract, and lemon juice, and set that bowl aside as well. In a large bowl, cream together the butter and the sugar, then add the eggs, one at a time, mixing well between additions. Add the grated lemon zest and then alternate between adding the flour mixture and the lemon juice mixture until they're all completely combined. Stir in the poppy seeds. Evenly distribute the batter between the cupcake liners. Place the cupcake pan in the oven and bake at 350 for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the cupcakes comes out clean.

Dump the freeze-dried blueberries into a blender (I used a Vitamix) and blend until a fine powder forms. Set them aside. In a medium-sized bowl, mix together the cream cheese and the butter until smooth. Add the powdered sugar and the powdered blueberries and mix until a frosting forms.

Frost cupcakes as desired.

Sunday Pot Roast

I'm not sure why I'm calling this a Sunday Pot Roast when you can make it on a Saturday as well.  It's not really a weekday kind of a dish even though it braises in the slow cooker, mainly because no one wants to sear meat first thing in the morning.  This is more the Italian style of pot roast, with tomatoes and red pepper, and though the picture doesn't do it justice, we created a lovely sauce with an immersion blender.  As you can probably judge from the pounds of meat in this recipe, you'll have a ton of welcome leftovers.  Top some egg noddles with the fallen apart meat and sauce or pair with some potatoes.....you know what you're doing. 

3.5 - 4 lbs chuck roast
2 cups wine
1 1/2 cups baby bella mushrooms, sliced
1 onion, cut roughly
1/4 c tomato paste
3 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
3 roasted red peppers
1 T dry seasoning (oregano, herbs de provence) or a small bunch of a fresh herbs

Cut chuck roast in half, generously season with salt and pepper.  Sear on all sides on a hot cast iron skillet.  In a small bowl stir wine, tomato paste and seasoning together.  Throw all ingredients along with meat into a slow cooker and let cook on high for about 6 hours, until tender.  Remove meat from slow cooker onto a plate, and with an immersion blender, puree all vegetables and sauce until a nice smooth and thick sauce is formed.  You can do this in a blender if you don't have an immersion one.  Pull meat apart in large chucks with a fork and place back into the slow cooker to stay warm.  Serve over egg noodles.   

Homemade Cheez-its

Ok, so may be I am turning into a hippie mom that makes everything from scratch, but in all honesty, I was craving Cheez-its and I was so curious about this recipe I had to try it.  I'm not going to lie to you like all the other bloggers out there and tell you these tasted exactly like Cheez-its, though to quote my husband when I said they weren't quite like the boxed kind "yes, because they taste like actual cheese, not like salty, cheese flavoring".  These are delightful cheese crackers, flaky, crisp, with a perfect cheese punch.  Everyone in the family loved them, even our sweet terrier who is usually quite respective of my daughter's snacks could not resist the toddling hand waving each little cracker in her face, and stole more than one from her only half suspecting hands.  These are highly addictive and won't last long, which is probably a good thing since without preservatives they wouldn't last long.  The recipe is incredibly easy, I swear to you.  It's just like making pie dough, and even the shaping was easy.  I wasn't going to buy a fluted pastry cutter just for this recipe, so I used a pizza cutter to slice up the dough into squares and it took seconds.  Use a chopstick to press little holes.  I used a mild cheddar cheese, but use a sharp one for even stronger flavors.  Original recipe can be found here.

8 ounces cheddar cheese, shredded
1 cup flour
4 T butter, room temperature
1 t kosher salt
1 T ice water

In a stand mixer with a paddle attachment, cream butter, cheese and salt.  Add flour and mix on low until pebbles are formed.  Slowly add water and mix until dough is barely formed.  Dump onto plastic wrap, pat into a disk, wrap and chill in fridge for about an hour.  I like my dough soft when I roll it out, so I let it sit out at room temperature for about an hour before I rolled it out.  Divide dough in half and roll into a thin (1/8 inch or less) rectangle (or whatever shape works, mine was nothing like a rectangle).  With a pizza cutter or "fluted pastry cutter" slice up and then across into 1 inch squares.  Press a hole into each one if you feel like it (I used a chopstick).  Place each square onto a silicone lined baking sheet.  You can do two sheets which may use up the entire batter.  Bake at 375 for about 15 minutes.  Keep an eye on them after about 12 to make sure they don't over bake.  They should be ever so slightly golden on the edges.  You can also find many recipes online with more step by step pictures.     

Toddler Crepes

I've never been the type to wake up and make a proper breakfast.  I'll have a cup of coffee, a green smoothie, and I'm good for a few hours.  But now that I have a toddler things have changed as I am forced to assemble a proper breakfast each morning.  Freshly chopped fruit and smoothies are always on hand, and then I usually go with scrambled eggs with pesto or some french toast.  Of course I wonder if adding a newborn to the mix soon means I'll soon be throwing a box of Cheerios her way while turning on cartoons so I can finish nursing an infant.  But anyway, I've been wanting to make crepes for a while now as I knew my daughter would love the texture and they would make a perfect finger food for breakfast and lunch.  I decided to make them extra healthy by adding sprouted millet flour, but whole wheat would be fine as well.  If you can find millet flour, this is an incredibly healthy addition when you are baking as it's packed full of nutrients and full of iron.  I think crepe batter is perfect for busy moms as you can store it in the fridge for a few days, make a large stack and store the crepes, covered, in the fridge, for a few more days.  It's a good idea to lay some parchment between each crepe when storing.  The possibilities for fillings are endless.  I've done peanut butter and jelly, peanut butter and honey (pictured), cream cheese and honey (a favorite of my daughter's), and melted cheese with pesto.  Just spread your filling across an open crepe, roll it up like a cigar, and slice into bite sized pieces like sushi.  To melt cheese just microwave the crepe with slices of cheese for a few seconds.  Of course crepes aren't just for toddlers, they are my favorite item to have on my brunch menus as guests can fill them with sweet or savory additions, and they can be served at room temperature.          

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup millet or whole wheat flour

1 T sugar

1/4 t coarse salt

1 1/2 c whole milk

4 eggs

3 T melted butter

Combine all ingredients in a blender, let rest in fridge for 15 minutes, or overnight.  Heat a 10 inch non-stick pan over medium heat.  I like to lightly brush the pan with a silicone brush dipped in melted butter after every other crepe.  Use an ice cream scoop or 1/4 measuring cup and pour batter into pan (lift pan and swirl until batter coats entire pan).  Cook for about 1 minute, gently lift the edge with a spatula and flip over, cooking on other side for a minute. This recipe makes about 16 crepes.

Blondies

I was in Trader Joe's yesterday and walked by a boxed mix for blondies.  I stopped, stood, stared, and realized I had to have blondies.  Soon.  So, I came home and baked a batch.  Lately I've been baking things like beet and butternut squash muffins for my daughter so it felt incredibly indulgent to be baking something exclusively for my own craving.  I looked up a few recipes which all seemed to be about the same, and decided to follow Smitten Kitchen's template with the addition of pecans.  I hadn't appreciated just how much like a cookie a blondie can be, which was an added bonus since I've been in the mood for chocolate chip cookies for days.  I almost wonder if next time I can make them more cake like by giving them some lift with baking soda.  Regardless, this is a solid recipe that's nice and simple and can be jazzed up with various additions. 

1/2 cup butter (1 stick), melted
1 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1 t vanilla
1/2 t salt
1 cup flour
1/2 cup chopped toasted pecans
3/4 chocolate chips (I used bittersweet)

In a medium bowl with the melted butter add sugar and beat until smooth.  Add egg and vanilla and beat again.  Fold in flour and salt, then chocolate and nuts.  Spread in a 8x8 baking dish and baking at 350 for about 20 minutes.  

Challah

I love a great loaf of challah, don't you?  The texture, the flavor, the way it makes the best french toast out there.  My daughter loves challah as well and since we've been going through a lot of the store bought I decided it was time to make some at home.  I made homemade challah years ago, for a cooking club gathering, and it's not a difficult bread to make, even with the braiding.  Though, as you can see from the photo, I started strong with the 6 braids and then just kind of gave up by the end, but it still looks nice.  The first time I made challah I used this recipe, which I highly recommend.  From what I can remember, it created three perfectly sweet loaves. I decided to try something else this time, and wanted a more manageable recipe that didn't make so many loaves, so I used this recipe from Melissa Clark, of the NYTimes.  It's a bit of a gourmet challah if you will, with more complex flavors, but perfectly easy to make.  Try your hand at a round loaf, or the braided kind, just watch a good video beforehand.  I recommend this one if you're going to tackle the 6 braid. 

1 package dry yeast

1 teaspoon sugar

1/2 cup warm water

1/3 cup orange juice (freshly squeezed from 1 big orange)

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

3 eggs

1/4 cup honey

1 1/2 teaspoons fine sea salt

4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, more as needed

In the bowl of a Kitchen Aid mixer, combine yeast, sugar, and 1/2 cup warm water. Let yeast mixture stand at room temperature for about 5 minutes until it starts to look foamy.

Whisk in orange juice, olive oil, 2 eggs, honey, and salt.  Fit mixer with dough hook and begin slowly beating in flour 1 cup at a time to form smooth dough, beating well after each addition. Beat on medium speed until smooth and elastic, but still sticky, about 5 minutes.  Turn dough out onto a floured work surface and knead for about 2 minutes until the dough begins to spring back. Lightly oil large bowl. Add dough, turning to coat with oil. Cover with plastic wrap, and let dough rise in warm draft-free area until doubled in volume, about 1 to 2 hours.  Punch down dough. Cover again with plastic and let rise another hour.  Punch dough down again.  Grease a baking sheet. Turn out dough onto lightly floured work surface. Divide dough into 6 equal portions.  Roll each piece into ropes. Place braided loaf on the baking sheet. Whisk remaining egg, brush dough all over and let rise again until almost doubled, about 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 375°F.  Brush dough again with egg.  Bake 30-40 minutes until golden and the bottom sounds hollow when tapped.

Homemade Fig Newtons

I swear I'm not turning into a hippie mom that doesn't buy anything store bought but instead insists on making everything from scratch.  At least I don't think I am.  And frankly, I never liked the original, but these are killer cookies, my friends.  Just the smell of the filling of dried figs and honey was intoxicating, I was immediately transported to Turkey.  My doctor reminded me the other day how good dried figs are for you...packed with iron, potassium, fiber, and then the idea of fig newtons became stuck in my head.  I knew my daughter would love them as a snack with some cold milk (apparently even my husband loves fig newtons).  Since she's never had the packaged kind I'm pretty sure if she were given one some day she'd say "these taste funny, I like my mom's", at least, I can dream, right?  I was raised a child of two immigrants who themselves were raised on fresh ingredients and homemade food.  They weren't even sent off to school with a cold lunch, but rather, it was delivered to them piping hot at mealtime.  I mean, can you imagine stay at home moms having one more thing to be responsible for?  I'm pretty sure they'd all quit.  So when my mother came to this country she was horrified at the options within grocery stores.  She couldn't believe soups came in cans, and cereals had sugar in them.  She brought us up in a way that would have made Michael Pollen proud.  I had to drizzle fresh honey on Cheerios because my mom didn't like the artificial flavors in Honey Nut Cherrios.  That's not to say that I didn't raid my best friend's pantry for Little Debbie snacks on occasion.  Sorry, mom.  This recipe is adapted from Weelicious, a great site for meal ideas for anyone with a toddler.  It was by far the most simple recipe I found and it worked out perfectly.  You could easily make this more healthy by using your flour of choice.  I used all-purpose but whole wheat would be even better, or spelt.  The cookies taste even better with age as they soften up, which is another element I love about this recipe.     

12 oz dried figs, chopped, with stem removed (I used Greek, Kalamata figs).  You can find dried figs at Whole Foods, or Trader Joes or your local Mediterranean market

pinch of orange zest

1 T honey 

6 T butter, soft

1/3 c sugar

1 egg

1 t vanilla

1 1/2 c flour

Place figs in a medium bowl and cover with boiling water.  Let sit for about 10 minutes.  In a food processor, add about 1 T of soaking liquid.  Drain figs and add to food processor along with honey and orange zest.  Pulse until a nice paste is formed.  With a stand mixer or a bowl with a hand mixer, cream butter and sugar for 2 minutes.  Add egg and vanilla and beat for a few more minutes.  Add flour and mix until a dough forms.  Dump dough out onto parchment paper.  If it is too sticky to work with let chill in fridge for 15 minutes.  I read some reviews for various fig newton recipes that mentioned the dough was difficult to work with.  I did not find this to be the case, but add flour or allow to come to room temperature if it's too sticky or cracks too much.  Roll out dough into a 12 inch by about 8 inch rectangle.  Slice in half, lengthwise, to form two rectangles.  Spoon out fig filling and spread along inner length of each rectangle.  Basically, since each piece of dough is 4 inches wide you want the filling to roughly fill in the inside 2 inches, with an inch border on each side.  The filling isn't the consistency of a jam, but more like a paste, so I really used my fingers and pressed it into the dough.  Fold over each side and press into each other to form the logs.  You'll need to judge the amount of filling with your eyes as if it's too full you may have trouble folding over the dough to form the log.  If the dough cracks simply pinch and pat it back into place.  It's really not rocket science.  You can always save some of the filling to use on bread or crackers.  If entertaining, the fig filling would be a great addition to a cheese platter.  Slice about 10 cookies per log and place on a lined baking sheet.  Bake at 350 for about 20 minutes or until ever so slightly golden along the edges.  

Banana Oatmeal Muffins

Where have I been?!!  I know, it's been ages since I've posted.  I've been busy!  I've got a toddler now, we've been traveling a lot, and I'm expecting again (hence, the missing muffin that I ate immediately after pulling those out of the oven).  But things are hopefully quieting down now, just in time to start preparing for our newest arrival, but I promise to bring you a recipe from time to time.  I don't often make muffins, and when I've got some overripe bananas lying around I usually make banana bread, but I was in the mood for muffins.....when the muffins at Starbucks start looking good to me, I know I've got a craving.  I wanted to make them a little more healthy for me and the family so I added some oats.  I also altered this recipe by turning my milk into buttermilk and substituting some cake flour for a portion of the all-purpose.  If you don't have cake flour it's no problem, I just figured it might give some lightness to the muffins.  This recipe is one to stick with for a while, not too sweet with a nice banana flavor, hearty with oats yet with a cake-like texture.     

1 c AP flour
1/2 c cake flour
1 c rolled oats
1 egg
1 c mashed banana
1/3 c canola oil
1/2 c sugar
3/4 buttermilk (or regular milk, or add a spoon of vinegar to regular milk and let sit for a few minutes)
1/2 t vanilla
1/2 t salt
2 t baking powder
1 t baking soda
some spices like cinnamon and nutmeg

Stir all dry ingredients together in one bowl.  In second bowl lightly beat egg and then beat in milk and oil.  Add vanilla and mashed bananas.  Stir in dry mixture until batter forms.  With ice cream scoop pour into a try of 12 lined muffin tins.  Bake at 400 for 18 minutes.